Cops ask who drove off Route 22 in a Jeep that flipped, burned

UPDATE: Bound Brook police said the driver turned themselves in on Sunday afternoon.  The driver and the passengers have not been identified by police. Three males were inside the Jeep and two arrests have been made in connection with the incident, according to police.

BOUND BROOK — Police are urging the driver of a Jeep that overturned and burst into flames off Route 22 on Saturday night to come forward.

First responders found the Jeep fully engulfed in the woods alongside eastbound Route 22 at Mountain Avenue around 11:35 p.m.

One individual found with the Jeep told police that he was one of two passengers plus a driver, according to Bound Brook police, who also said nobody else was found inside the Jeep.

A second person was found about a mile north of the scene on Mountain Avenue, after a search that also involved police from Bridgewater, Green Brook and Middlesex plus the State Police Aviation Unit. Both people received medical treatment, according to police.

As of late Sunday morning, police still had not located a third person and the department made an appeal on its Facebook page for the driver to come forward.

"We understand accidents happen, however, everyone should realize that we must be held accountable for our actions. The amount of emergency personnel and resources that were utilized in this case should weigh just a little bit on your conscience. And always realize that while it’s not necessary to issue summonses in cases like this, it’s very likely," the department posted on its Facebook page.

The post did not give any additional information about what might have caused the Jeep to flip and burn.

Captain Kevin Rivenbark said word spread quickly on social media about the crash and a large number of people who may have known the individuals in the Jeep came to the crash scene.

"With the conditions that the Jeep was in, it was on fire completely engulfed and the weather was freezing cold our main concern is if there anyone else that wandered away or was ejected and is laying in the woods somewhere that needs medical attention," Rivenbark said.

New Jersey 101.5 Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow said that the Rutgers NJ Weather Network has a weather station at Duke Farms in Hillsborough, less than 5 miles away from Bound Brook.

"At 11:30 p.m. Saturday night the temperature was 28 degrees. With a 12 mph breeze, the wind chill was 18," Zarrow said.

Bound Brook police asked anyone with information about the incident to call them at 732-356-0800.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ

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